[LINK] Eight things you may not know about the internet

[Kim Holburn]

http://www.newscientist.com/special/unknown-internet

> Eight things you didn't know about the internet
>
>

> 1. Who controls the internet?
>
> The official answer is no one, but it is a half-truth that few swallow
>
>
> 2. Could the net become self-aware?
>
> In engineering terms, it is easy to see similarities between the  
> human brain and the internet's complex network of nodes, so could  
> conciousness be the next step?
>
>
> 3. How big is the net?
>
> In 2008, Google announced that its systems had registered a trillion  
> unique pages – but even this might represent a fraction of what is  
> out there
>
>
> 4. Is there only one internet?
>
> The internet is a disparate mix of interconnected computers, many of  
> them on large networks run by universities, businesses and so on –  
> so what unites them, if anything?
>
>
> 5. Is the net caught in the credit crunch?
>
> Real-estate prices crashing, a big drop in growth, the threat of  
> infrastructure collapse, and authorities printing more money to  
> stave off disaster – that's just the virtual world
>
>
> 6. Where are the net's dark corners?
>
> There are plenty of places online that you would do well to steer  
> clear of: some could leave your computer infected with worms or  
> viruses – then there are the "black holes"
>
>
> 7. Is the net hurting the environment?
>
> Sending an email across the Atlantic Ocean does not burn any jet  
> fuel, but the internet is not without its own, huge carbon footprint
>
>
> 8. Could we shut the net down?
>
> When even the biggest cyber-attacks have failed to bring down the  
> web, governments might not fare much better
>




-- 
Kim Holburn
IT Network & Security Consultant
Ph: +39 06 855 4294  M: +39 3494957443
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